Brussels market: High quality The projected increase in vacancy over the coming year or more due to speculative products coming onto a market which is suffering from a crisisinduced lack of demand, has led to developers slowing the pace of new at-risk constructions. This situation is likely to last until at least 2010, but the buildings which are coming to the market in the interim period are of high quality and are already displaying the green technical features which will become compulsory as time goes on. North Light / Pole Star North District, Brussels Fortis Real Estate 75,000 m² Delivery: September 2010 North Light / Pole Star is the latest to take its place in the North District of Brussels, the so-called mini-manhattan located close to the canal and the city centre. The letting of this project at the very end of 2009, almost a year before completion, to GDF-Suez, saved the Brussels letting market from what would have been a disastrous year. Rendering Archi 2000 South City Offices Avenue Fonsny 23-30, B-1060 Brussels South City Office SA & South City Hotel SA (Atenor Group, Espace Midi (Besix Red, CFE, CIB, Soficom Development) and BPI) / 18,670 m 2, offices Parking : 96 Delivery: November 2010 This project is located along the Avenue Fonsny, and forms part of an extensive restructuring programme for the South Station area, which has been underway for around two decades. The building is opposite the exit from the South Station concourse. The façade is conceived in light coloured stone with parts in brick and other elements in grey-tinted thermo-lacquered aluminium. The glazing features a high degree of light transmission, acoustic and thermal insulation. The office buildings have been designed for maximum comfort for the occupants. Surface area : Delivery: Tour & Taxis Boulevard Du Port, 1000 Brussels Project T&T Several, by project +/ 400,000 m² all functions included ongoing over several years To refer to Tour & Taxis as a project is an understatement. Located along the canal, it is very close to the North District, and is the largest single urban redevelopment programme ever seen in the capital (on a 30 h. site). It includes restored listed buildings (the former customs buildings from the 19th century), along with the creation of offices, residential accommodation, a very large green area and the Brussels Environment building, the largest passive building in Europe. 14
products in favour South Crystal Avenue Fonsny, 1060 Brussels South Crystal 6,537 m² offices ; 840 m² retail Parking: 34 Delivery: March 2011 Premium Quai de Willebroeck, Brussels Atenor / Alco Building Ateliers Lion (Paris) et A2RC (Brussels) 80 000 m² total, 30,000 m² offices Delivery: From 2011 Premium is a new tower development located in the North District of Brussels, across the canal from Tour & Taxis. As well as the 140 metre high tower there will be lower level villa-type constructions and a vast office complex. The whole of the project will benefit from services such as a concierge, wellness centre, and a promenade alongside the canal. Alongside Brussels South Station (TGV, Thalys, Eurostar), South Crystal represents the first office building on the Avenue Fonsny when coming from the major boulevards. Much smaller than the other office buildings, it assumes the role as an urban relay, through its medium size, which underlines contrasts and connections: a transition between horizontal and vertical fabric taking its place alongside a neighbouring hotel of vertical structure on the corner of a street and an avenue a clear expression of a dual offices/shops programme rendering Atenor Connect with www.pro-realestate.be to discover office development projects and find the coordinates of their real estate developers, architects, and advisers Jacqmain 135 Boulevard Jacqmain 135, 1000 Brussels Kairos Surface area : 11,000 m² offices, + retail and residential Parking : 78 Delivery : May 2010 Jacqmain 135 is located in the centre of Brussels, close to both the historic heart and the North District. It represents a combination of a restored building and a new construction, and will offer mixed functions of offices, residential accommodation and retail. 15
Media Corner Chaussée de Louvain / Avenue Léon Grosjean, 1140 Brussels Robelco Group Assar Architects / 32,972 m² (4 buildings) Parking: 740 Availability: tbd Media Corner has been designed so that a remarkable weeping willow tree will remain visible from the Chaussée de Louvain, through the particularly transparent architecture. The façades of the first three buildings are composed of brick, and are of filled and empty type. Anodised aluminium has been selected for the window frames. The dynamic aspect and the sense of rhythm of the façade are achieved through several combinations of formats, including openings of two different sizes, and modulation of 135 cm. Some of the openings will be grouped together via an anodised aluminium window feature. Détrois Astro Tower Avenue de l Astronomie 14, 1000 Brussels Astro Tower Lease 48,150 m² Originally constructed in 1976, Astro Tower is located close to the Place Madou on the Brussels inner ring road. This location is between the Leopold (European) district and the North district. The building offers 31 floors at a total height of 107 metres. The renovation will feature a dual façade cladding, and the installation of wind turbines, which will significantly decrease energy consumption. Van Volxem Avenue Van Volxem 366-368, 1190 Brussels CIT Blaton, JCX Immo Art & Build Architect Offices: 20,349 m² (6 buildings from 2,502 m 2 to 4,284 m 2 ) Parking: 183 Delivery: 2011 + Located a few hundred metres from Brussels South Station, the philosophy behind the project is based on sustainable development. The accent has been put on the recyclable nature of the project: the construction of autonomous units, the size, the floor areas, the free height, all enable a high degree of flexibility of use and easy conversion to other uses without problem. The inside finishing has been intentionally reduced in order to favour basic, strong and recyclable materials: brick façades, wood, aluminium, steel, stone; listed buildings on the site have also been renovated. 16
Hooox Quattuor Chaussée de Wavre 1076-1124, 1160 Brussels Brustar Auderloft sa Assar Architects 10,828 m² (4 buildings) Parking: 186 Delivery: beginning immediately, in phases The site comprises three parts, spread across 4 buildings surrounding a small square. In the interests of coherence, the architects decided upon similar sizes (3 or 4 levels above ground) and decided to use the same ranges of materials and colours: lower parts in natural stone or similar, with the treatment of the upper levels being in brick and light coloured roughcast, metallic coverings, dark window sills In order to alleviate the volumes, the upper floors are slightly set back compared to the ground floor. There is a retail element to this development. Platinum Avenue Louise 245, 1050 Brussels Burco Archi 2000 Surface area : 23,620 m² Delivery: Spring 2010 Platinum is the first major development on the Avenue Louise (Louise office district) for many years. It occupies a position midway between the Bois de la Cambre woods and the Place Louise (law courts). The Platinum has been designed to offer modern facilities and energy efficiency, and is partially pre-let to the Belgian State and a law firm. Image supplied by Immobel Yvan Glavie / Crepain Binst Image supplied by Burco Impératrice 17-19 Boulevard de l Impératrice 17-19, 1000 Brussels Befimmo Crepain Binst Architecture Surface : 14,158 m² Parking: 53 Delivery: 2011 Impératrice represents the total renovation of an iconic building first constructed in 1960 and bearing the name Telex. It has been recognised by the Brussels Capital Region, receiving an award for ecological conception, low energy use and costs, and reduced CO2 emissions. Impératrice 17-19 is located between Brussels Central station and the St. Michel and Gudule Cathedral, just a stone s throw from the Grand Place. The area around the station is currently being entirely renovated. Forum Rue de la Croix de Fer Rue de Louvain, 1000 Brussels Immobel Archi 2000 Surface area : 55,000 m² Delivery: 2010-2013 Forum occupies a block in the heart of Brussels historic centre, just behind the Belgian Parliament and Senate, close to the Royal Park and Palace, and a short distance from the Grand Place. In early 2010 the sale of the building to the Belgian State, for its own use, was confirmed; the building is set to be delivered in phases over a 3-4 year period. It has been designed to be energy-efficient, with features such as rain-water recuperation and low luminance lighting. Connect with www.pro-realestate.be to discover office development projects and find the coordinates of their real estate developers, architects, and advisers 17
White Atrium Avenue de la Toison d Or, 1060 Brussels. Property manager: BEOS Gmbh Atliplan Architects Surface area : 9500 m² Delivery: 2010 White Atrium is undergoing a total renovation, and will be equipped with the latest technological features. Most of the building is occupied by offices, but it also includes some residential accommodation and a wellness centre. Located close to the Law Courts and the Avenue Louise, White Atrium will offer extremely flexible offices set around a vast atrium. Veridis Avenue Herrmann-Debroux, 1160 Brussels Herpain Urbis Assar Architects Arcade 6,561 m² offices Parking: 69 Delivery: tba Located in the green districtof Auderghem in Brussels, the Veridis office building is part of the voluntary approach of developing a new building generation with environmental, social and economic added value. The aim is to decrease the ecological footprint of the building while improving the health and the comfort aspects. Veridis, which is currently in conception phase. Spread over four floors, Veridis provides 6,561 m² of above-ground office space and 110m² of below-ground archives, along with 69 parking spaces. The average floor area is 1,500m². The project brings together architectural quality and comfort with technical and environmental performance. Image supplied by Anixton Altiplan Architects Image supplied by Assar Architects Gateway Brussels Airport Brussels The Airport Company / A2RC Surface area : 48,000 m² Gateway is being entirely renovated, having originally been in a U shape alongside the original terminal at Brussels Airport. It will now be set around a central atrium. There will be a covered garden which will constitute a meeting area for the whole complex. Realex Rue de la loi 99-105, en Rue J De Lalaing 30-34 1000 Brussels Dexia Insurance/Realex Surface area : 28,425 m² + 10,589 m² Parking: 90 Delivery: 2012-2013 Described as possibly the last major development in the Leopold (European) district of Brussels, this real estate development project consists of a plot located at Rue de la Loi 99-105. It has been granted a planning permit which allows for substantial office space above ground and a large basement area. In addition to its high architectural quality, the building will be state of the art in terms of both technology and the environment. 18
Atlantis Avenue Charles Quint, 1040 Brussels Codic DSW Architects / Cerau Surface area : 24,000 m² Delivery: Autumn 2010 Belair Boulevard Pacheco, 1000 Brussels Breevast / Arne Quinze studio / Archi 2000 70,000 m² offices + hotel + retail + residential Parking: 2,400 Delivery: 2012 This project represents the redevelopment of a very long building located alongside Brussels inner ring road, close to the North District and the historic city centre. Once completed it will offer not only 70,000 m² of offices, but a large public area with a hotel, residential accommodation and a retail facilities. The Access and Bridge buildings, currently under construction, have been awarded BREEAM certification with the mention Very Good. These are the first buildings in Europe to be certified under the new BREEAM Europe for Offices norm. Amongst factors taken into account are construction process management, comfort, health and safety of occupants, along with energy use considerations and accessibility by public transport. Atlantis is located at the western entrance to Brussels, at the end of the motorway leading to the seaports of Zeebruges, Ostend, Calais and Dunkirk. Image supplied by Montois Partners Architects Image supplied by Codic Trio Chaussée de Charleroi 110-116, 1050 Brussels CBRE Investors Jaspers - Eyers & Partners Surface area : 24,951 m² Parking: 137 Delivery: August 2010 Trio offers three units ranging from around 3,000 m² to over 11,000 m². It benefits from facilities styled by the developer as Five Star Services, including a concierge for taking care of the needs of its occupants in terms of the provision of outside services. Located in the Louise business district, Trio isclose to the Place Stéphanie and Place Louise, and therefore benefits from good public transport connections in addition to its own 137 parking spaces. Airport Plaza Vuurberg Grenstraat, 1831 Diegem Robelco Investment manager : CBRE Investors Architects : Montois Partners / Laurent Willox / Maud Caubet Surface area : 36,159 m² Parking: 697 Delivery: 2009-2010 A major new multi-building project at the very entrance to Brussels International Airport it is literally within walking distance Airport Plaza is the latest addition to this thriving business district. One of the advantages in terms of access, apart from the obvious, is that Brussels Airport has a direct rail link to the city centre, running every 15 minutes and with a 15 minute journey time. Connect with www.pro-realestate.be to discover office development projects and find the coordinates of their real estate developers, architects, and advisers 19
Eolis Square Sainctelette, 1000 Brussels CBRE Investors Assar Architects Parking: 41 Delivery: August 2010 8,991 m 2 (office + archives) 304 m 2 retail 210 m² terraces The Eolis project represents the redevelopment project of an office building located at the Square Sainctelette close to the North district of Brussels. The layout will offer optimal flexibility to choose between partitioned and open-space offices. The building meets the Brussels EPB 2011 regulations (E=75; K=34) and also complies with the International environmental label (the HQE certification). Europa Rue de la Loi, 1000 Brussels Atenor Archi + i Surface area : 30,000 m² Delivery: 2016 Located on the Rue de la Loi in the heart of Brussels European district, Europa forms part of a project to redesign this area, breaking up the corridor effect of the road. The architectural style of the building has to take into account the desire of the Brussels region master-plan to integrate any new construction here into its surroundings. Assar Architects Atenor 20